Source of the Fire
by Icequeen616
Summary: "Run away while you can," I interrupted, "if you don't, I might just kill you too." I turned around and continued to walk towards my house; leaving a confused Ace in my wake.
1. Chapter 1  First Impressions

**Hey guys! So I posted a story before and I must admit. The writing bug has infected me. So, due to three reviews, I decided to write this. I'm not going to torture you and say that I must have reviews to finish writing the next chapter. The truth is, if I feel like it, I will. If I don't then I won't. Now, reviews would probably encourage me to 'feel like it'. Just saying. Anyways, thanks for reading this, it really means a lot. Happy reading!**

**Oh, I own nothing.**

Source of the Fire

Apples or bananas?

This was the question floating through my mind as I gazed distastefully at the bruised and discolored fruit presented before me while shifting my heavy shopping basket to my other arm. "Why don't you take both?" Said the seller from behind her display table. "They're both delicious. I just picked them this morning." Oh, really now? I highly doubted that. These were a week old at the least. Not to mention that her hands were completely free of any kind of dirt or filth.

I sighed. I hated coming to the market place. Not only was it a long walk from my secluded house at the edge of the forest, but it also never had quality food. I would have just used the apples from my apple tree, but sadly, I had finished them the week before. Then, two days ago, one of the monkeys from the forest decided to test his courage and wander out from behind the trees. He must have been hungry because I caught him raiding my banana tree. Unfortunately, I didn't chase him off in time. He escaped with two entire bushels of my precious fruit. The rest died due to the cold front that had just blown in.

Normally, I didn't mind the erratic mood swings of the sky. They brought change to my otherwise boring life. I must have done something to anger the wind and bring its chilly wrath upon my vegetation.

It wasn't only my trees that felt the brunt of the weather. All of my plants had died. My pumpkins, carrots, lettuce, tomatoes, wheat, and even my sugar cane all became casualties of the weather's vengeance. I had been so optimistic at the lush produce that I procrastinated canning them so that I could stare at the product of my hard work. It really had been a good harvest. Now, there was nothing and I had run out of food.

"Excuse me miss. If you're just going to stand there daydreaming then I'm afraid you'll have to leave. You're blocking the way of my other potential customers you see," boasted Minamotto, the fruit seller, pompously. I glanced around at the lack of a crowd. The market place was busy, but there was an absence of shoppers surrounding her booth. Whether it was due to my presence or her lack of edible food, I couldn't honestly say. It could be either one. I wasn't particularly welcome and, though I wasn't out rightly ridiculed, I could still hear the whispers that the creepy girl had come to town.

"Let's go miss. You're bad for business," the woman's impatient voice interjected through my thoughts once again.

While narrowing my eyes at her, I decided to just get both. I picked up the apple that possessed the least amount of bruising and a banana that was still very green. I would just let it ripen on its own. As for the apple, although it was the choicest of its group, it still possessed many bruises. I could probably cut the bruises out and use the rest to make apple sauce.

I left her booth quickly and walked to the butcher's booth. Wordlessly the butcher handed me a slab of meat and told me the price. I didn't comment on the fact that the previous customer had bought a much larger piece of beef at a much cheaper price. I was in too much of a hurry to argue with the robust woman this time. There was also the fact that I wanted to return to my shelter as soon as possible.

The reason for my urgency had little to do with the villagers' feelings and more to do with the rumors I had heard of a pirate ship having docked earlier that morning. Otherwise, I would have bought a lot more than what I already had.

Unfortunately, I was not done shopping. I still had one more place to go. The bread stand. I dreaded approaching the sneering face of the man behind it. Steeling myself, I ducked my head and walked to the corner of his stand. I was about to grab a loaf when his hand covered my wrist.

"Look whose back," he exclaimed with a sick grin on his face. "Have you reconsidered my offer then?" Apart from running the only bread booth in the village, he also ran a side business. One that involved activities that were not decent for common conversation.

"I told you, I'm underage and not interested," I mumbled quietly so as to not attract attention.

Almost immediately his grip tightened into a very painful one and his eye's grew hard. "I didn't quite catch that. Why don't you say out loud how you've accepted my offer?"

Unwillingly, I began to shake with fear. After failing to stop it I reverted to my old failsafe. I sneered and told him, "I said no. Now let go of me you oaf." Although he let go of my wrist I knew I had made a mistake and karma would eventually get back at me.

"In that case, I have a loaf of bread just for you." He reached towards the bottom of the pile and pulled out a loaf. It looked ok and I was relieved at his easy acceptance this time…until I heard a clunk as it hit the table. Poking it, I realized that it was rock solid. I would have protested indignantly, but I decided to refrain and take my small victory. I picked it up and paid him the amount he listed. Again I ignored the high price and left with my head held high.

I didn't like to be around men as it was. Pirates even less. They lied and cheated and gambled and drank and stole and flirted. Normal men did these things too, but pirates got violent if they didn't get what they wanted. Pirates had knives and guns as well.

In my haste I nearly tripped over Toby, a cute seven year old boy who was considered the sweetest child in the village. He was also the only male that I could stand to be around. I glanced at his adorable cheeks as I apologized.

"Sorry Toby, I wasn't watching where I was going."

"Don't worry about it miss Haruna. Just be careful. I don't want you to trip and scrape your knees."

My eyes began to water at the boy's concern for me. Toby was the only member out of the entire village who treated me with kindness. I noticed he was once again carrying a large pot full of boiling water.

"Is your grandmother's stove broken again?"

"Yeah,"

"That pot looks really heavy."

"I don't mind. Gammy needs hot water for her tea. It helps her bones stop hurting."

"Would you like some help carrying it?"

"If it won't bother you,"

I playfully tapped my chin. "Well, my baskets are really heavy and I would love some help carrying one of them." I gasped in mock surprise. "How about this, if you carry one of my baskets then I'll carry that pot for you. That way, we can help each other out."

Toby thought for a moment and his smile slowly started to grow. "Okay, it's a deal."

Grinning to myself I handed Toby my lightest basket and took his pot from him. He carried the lighter basket with ease as we made our way to his grandmother's house. About halfway there, Toby stopped. "Do you need a break," I asked.

"No, I'm full of energy!" He boasted with a grin. His grin slowly fell as he held out the loaf of bread I had picked up earlier. "Why is it so hard?"

I quickly rearranged my facial expression to hide my shock. I was not aware that the bread had been inside of the basket that he held. Cursing my oversight, I plastered on a fake smile and laughed. "Silly Toby, I like my bread that way. It weighs more and makes me full faster."

"Our bread's always soft," he continued. Damn, I told myself, he's observant.

"Bread is a lot like tea," I tried, "Some people like it black, and some people like it with milk and lots of sugar. I happen to like my bread hard and crunchy."

Toby seemed to accept this but his eyes still had doubts in them. I decided an uneasy acceptance was enough and enacted a different approach. "So, was that just an excuse for a break?"

"No way, I'm not tired at all!"

"Then let's go,"

"I'll go first. That way, I can protect you."

"Ok then. Lead the way." At my words, Toby marched in front of me with a proud gait. Smiling to myself I followed him and ignored the glares of the townspeople that followed me.

We soon arrived at his grandmother's house. I had planned to switch loads with Toby before the grandmother even noticed my presence. Unfortunately, that plan was ruined when she came hobbling out and yelling. "Get away from my grandson this instant. How dare you come anywhere near him? What do you plan to do? Are you going to kill him like you did that little girl?"

I quickly grew tired of her ranting and interrupted her. "Calm yourself. You're going to pull something if you continue to strain yourself. Think about it. What kind of example are you setting for your grandson?"

Dumbstruck, she glared at me. "Don't you dare tell me how to act in front of my grandson."

Seeing that there was no way to get through to this woman, I switched loads with Toby and told him goodbye. I noticed the bread fall out of the basket but decided to leave it. I would rather leave now than try to eat a rock.

I turned my back and began to walk away. I had every intention of walking all the way back home, but something struck me in the shoulder. Pain flared up and if it weren't for the baskets on both of my arms, I would have grabbed it to help soothe it. I froze. That old hag dared to attempt to hurt my shoulder. My precious shoulder. If she really wants me to be a fiend then I'll show her what one really looks like. Slowly I turned around and glared at Toby's grandmother.

"Was that really wise," I asked in a deadly voice with an eerie smile on my face, "Let's not forget that you are old and frail. I could shoot you with an arrow in your sleep. Is that not what you're afraid I'll do to Toby? You say I killed that little girl. Should I kill you too?"

"You murderer," she screamed as a crowd approached us, "you…you…MONSTER!"

Monster? Was that what I had become? I looked down at Toby and saw fear in his eyes. Snapping myself out of my trance; I looked left and right at the villagers who were all glaring at me. Beneath those glares, their legs were shaking. I knew they hated me, but were they afraid of me as well? I looked back to Toby who was now hugging his grandmother tightly. I turned around and walked off.

On the long walk home the old lady's words echoed through my head. Murderer… Monster… was that really how they saw me? I could easily brush aside the first comment. It wasn't true. But the second, that word stung.

I bumped into someone right as I left the village and nearly toppled over with all of my food along with me. Luckily, a pair of heavily muscled arms caught me and brought me close to an equally muscled chest. Shaken by my lack of observation towards my surroundings I sagged slightly and leaned against the chest. It felt comforting to be in this almost embrace with him. Wait, him? I jumped out of his arms in fear and stared at him.

He was wearing a loud orange hat with two unique faces staring at me. One was frowning sadly and the other was smiling maniacally. He had freckles coating his cheek bones. He was also wearing black pants and nothing else other than his shoes.

Again I felt the familiar shaking of fear as I gazed at him. He was attractive, there was no mistaking that. He was a new face as well. I searched his face for any sign of cruelty but found none. So, he couldn't be a pirate. He must just have moved to the village. He seemed nice but I knew that would change by tomorrow. They always do.

"Careful, I'd hate for you to drop those." I continued to stare at him. The silence between us was penetrated only by the occasional shouts of the other villagers. "So, those look kind of heavy. Want some help carrying them wherever you're going. You see I'm supposed to be looking for…"

"Run away while you can," I interrupted, "if you don't, I might just kill you too." I glared at him but felt a smile growing on my face; causing my expression to turn sinister. I turned around and continued to walk towards my house; leaving the confused man behind.

**So, interesting fact. I have a tendency to not name my characters as you've probably noticed from my other story Repairing Flame. So, after I wrote this I reread it and just popped in her name. **


	2. Chapter 2  Happy Hunting

**Hi. So, I don't really like this chapter but my friend told me she liked it. Well, her and everyone else who read it. Sigh, one day I'll tell my low self-esteem to go die in a hole. Until then, it will continue to beat me over the head with insecurities. Oh well. Hope you enjoy it anyways. Thunderfist, I've double checked my grammar for you. I hope it's better now. **

**Oh yeah, I own nothing except for Haruna.**

"_Run away while you can," I interrupted, "if you don't, I might just kill you too." I glared at him but felt a smile growing on my face; causing my expression to turn sinister. I turned around and continued to walk towards my house; leaving the confused man behind._

I tried to walk calmly to keep up a persona of dignity. I succeeded at first, but as I walked away from the shirtless man, my feet began to pick up their pace. The moment I was sure the man could no longer see me, they leapt into an all out sprint.

Tears threatened my eyes but I refused to let them fall. I would not let the villagers reduce me to this. I continually chanted a phrase that I had created as a child through my head. Tears are merely a lack of discipline. Tears are merely a lack of discipline. It worked. The moisture in my eyes receded, but the speed off my feet did not. I was about halfway home when I tripped over something. I landed face first, and slammed my nose into the gravel. The pain in my shoulder that had lain dormant since my retreat decided to wake up and was joined by the throbbing in my nose.

Cursing, I dragged myself to my feet. My apples and bananas now covered the floor, and I had to bend over to pick them up. As I bent over one of the bananas, I noticed a spot of red on it. This was soon joined by another. I stared dumbly at it. As far as I knew, bananas didn't bleed.

My nose was running as well. How annoying. The cold must have drawn out my allergies. I was too distraught to ponder the fact that I had never been bothered by allergies before. Roughly, I swiped my hand across my nose. Without even looking at it, I rubbed it on my skirt. I began to pick up the banana again, but I stopped as it continued to drip. Frustrated, I once more swiped my hand across and wiped it on my skirt. Before I could even attempt to reclaim my banana, I felt it drip yet again.

Releasing the sounds of my frustration I again swiped at my sore nose. This time I glared angrily at the liquid only to realize that my hand was covered in red. I mentally slapped myself as I realized my nose was bleeding. Great, the sun was setting, and I was going to be stuck in the dark. I needed to get home so that I could grab my bow and arrow and hunt for some more meat.

I pinched my nose and threw my head back, but I started to cough when the blood started to drain in the back of my throat. This wasn't working. I was in a hurry and didn't have time for this! I gave up, and again pinched my nose. This time, I picked up the banana with one hand while simultaneously pinching with the other. Soon, all the fruit was back in the baskets. Now I just had to wait for the cursed nose bleed to give up and stop bleeding. I sat on the ground and waited. My skirt was filthy and my face was probably covered in blood. I hoped that the shorts I was wearing underneath were in better shape.

Finally, the blood flow stopped, and I could resume the walk to my house. Even though I didn't run this time, I still tripped multiple times. Thanks to some act of mercy, my fruit stayed in the basket throughout my falls. By the time I arrived home, my knees were bloody and my skirt was torn. This was another reason I hated going down to the village. I always tripped at some point on the way back.

I had no way to lock my house when I wasn't inside. So, I just opened the door and set my baskets on my hand crafted wooden table. They were covered in dirt and the basket was muddy. I would have to clean the table later. For now, I needed to clean myself off and change into my hunting pants.

I walked over to my chest and pulled out a pair of long tan pants. They were old and were covered with dirt and holes. I would need to buy a new pair soon. I fingered the worn out material and estimated that they could still be used for maybe a week or two. After switching them with my skirt and shorts, I went to the wash basin. I was about to wipe the blood off of my face when I paused.

The blood would attract larger predators. Grinning to myself, I grabbed my bow and arrows, my knife, and my sack. I then proceeded to walk out the door.

My house was located side by side with the forest. It was so close that I just had to take a few steps and I was immersed in the trees. The moon was full tonight, and would provide plenty of light for me to see. I continued deeper into the forest until I could no longer see anything but the trees. I found a large tree and stood next to it. After checking my surroundings twice to be sure that there was a lack of predators, I closed my eyes and began to hum to myself. Slowly, I felt my consciousness leave and be replaced by my instincts. All thoughts, except for those that I needed, left my head.

Glancing around rapidly, I grabbed two thick sticks and began to hack at the gravel bellow me. After the soil had become loose I used my hands to scoop out clumps of dirt. Finally, the hole was deep enough. Again, I scavenged around until I found more sticks. I broke each of them in half and thrust each of them into the ground with the broken ends facing up.

Gradually, I became aware of dampness in my knees. I looked down to notice that they were still bleeding, and the blood was now staining my pants. I swiped at my knees and blotted the blood along the gravel.

I left the area to find a clearing with a space in the trees. I hid next to the trees and positioned my arrow towards the opening that led to the sky while ignoring the ache in my shoulder. I tensed every muscle in my body and waited; refusing to move. My eyes were glued to the night sky; waiting for any kind of movement.

Then, I saw it. Movement. Without thinking, I released my bow in one fluid motion. The bird fell down into the clearing. I ran to the middle and dragged it to the edge of the trees.

Crouching over the dead pigeon, I yanked out the arrow and grabbed a fistful of feathers. I ripped them out and continued to do so until there was no trace of them. I then tore the wings off with my bare hands. I placed the non-bloody wings in a pile beside me. I placed the body in one hand and shoved the thumb of my other hand through the skin and underneath the breast bone. After securing a firm hold I gave a great tug. I removed the meat and placed it into my sac.

Now that I had finished skinning it, I had bait. I gathered the organs and the wings and placed them in the middle of the opening. I hurried to one of the larger trees and stood next to it. I placed my hands on either side of the trunk and began to climb. My shoulder made it slightly more difficult than it should have been, but I pushed the pain to the far recesses of my mind. Once I was in a sturdy enough branch with a good view of my bait, I again positioned my arrow and waited while repeating the process. I was not long before a coyote came along and began to gnaw at the carcass of the bird. Quickly and efficiently, I once again unsheathed my arrow and let it fly. Excited by my large kill I quickly scrambled down to claim my prize.

I dragged it out of the clearing and again skinned it. I put the meat in my sac and left the unwanted remains for bait again. That way the animals would associate this area with free food. I covered my tracks and went to check on my trap. Fortune was not on my side. I had caught something. It looked as though it has been a fox, but something made off with it; leaving only tufts of orange fur and an ear. I sighed. The animals were getting smarter after years of being hunted. With what I had caught tonight, I would probably need to hunt again I a week. I decided to call it a night and began trek home.

While walking, I had to stop and rearrange my load due to the uncomfortable twinges my shoulder was making. I placed my sac and arrows on the ground. I then placed my hand on the offending joint and began to roll my shoulder to alleviate some of the tension. Once finished, I hoisted my meat sac onto my back and secured the strap. I placed my quiver of arrows on the other shoulder in an attempt at reducing the pain. I was in the process of lifting my bow when I heard a twig snap. I told myself it was another predator and aimed my duo of weapons at the source of the sound. Maybe it would be large enough that I could wait two weeks before having to return. When I heard the sound again, I released my arrow into the forest.

Almost immediately, a bright light flashed. Now, I was on edge. I kept my weapons at the ready and slowly crept towards the light. I would keep a distance, I told myself, until I knew for sure what it is. Hand to hand fighting was not my strong suit. I could shoot an arrow and easily hit my mark, but if I was forced into a situation that called for close combat, I would lose.

I darted behind trees and bushes as I neared the destination. I could see something in the distance. Its size was larger than my own; definitely dangerous. I could not make out a definite form so I slowly edged closer; hiding behind the trees to avoid being seen.

I was so pre-occupied with hiding that I forgot to pay attention to the ground and accidently stepped on a twig. I froze upon hearing the sound. The animal would probably run away in fear now, and I would lose my chance for a large dinner.

The creature did the opposite of what I expected. It straightened itself out and began to … stand up? I blinked my eyes in the hope that what I thought I saw would change. To my dismay, it didn't. The shape of the shadow of the creature resembled that of a man. This man was tensed and appeared to be searching for something. In horror, I realized that it was me! I hastily began to back away. Being alone with a man at this hour and at this place was not a situation I would enjoy.

My hasty retreat was not a good idea. I tripped over a root and made a loud crunching sound. The man turned towards me and began to make his way towards where I was sitting. Stories I had heard the villagers tell about the poor girls who ended up alone with men raced through my mind, but there was no escape. He had seen me and was rapidly approaching. I quickly stood and aimed my arrows at him; wincing at the twinge my shoulder gave. I did not slacken my grip and kept my position while ignoring the pain that increased from the strain. Once the man was near enough, he noticed my bow.

His eyebrows shot up in surprise. "You're the village girl," he exclaimed. I suspiciously took a closer look at him and gasped. He was the man I had warned off. His hat hid part of his face but I could still see his freckles spaced out across his cheeks. Realizing what he had said; I grew indignant.

"I do not belong to that village!" How dare he accuse me of being a part of those cruel people! Why was he not afraid of the fact that I was pointing a weapon at him?

"Oh really? Sorry about that. Hey, would you mind lowering your weapon. It's making me slightly uncomfortable. Plus, you already tried to shoot me with it."

"No." My voice was slightly scratchy from its lack of use during my hunting. I was still slightly in my hunter mode and refused to fall for his obvious attempt to make me lower my guard.

"Actually, you did. I'm just lucky I'm not dead. You have really good aim."

Was he an idiot? My answer was meant for his request. And flattery, that would never work. But he did capture my attention. "Good aim? Meaning I was on target. Then why are you alive?"

"Devil's fruit ability. See?" I gawked as his hands lit on fire. It was incredible. Wait, did he…

"You disintegrated my arrow!" I glared at him. My precious hand crafted arrow; gone.

"It was self-defense. Besides, you're the one who shot it at me!" He argued back. Strange, his personality seemed harmless, but his rippling muscles suggested otherwise.

Annoyed by his logic; I changed the subject. "Why are you here?"

"I was trying to gather supplies for Pops' ship, but I got a little lost. Why are you here?"

I raised an eyebrow and stated the obvious, "Hunting,"

"For what," he asked; perplexed.

"Anything,"

"Oh. … … How's it going?"

"Not well." There was a long awkward silence before I gruffly asked, "want me to show you the way back to the village?"

"Absolutely, that would be really helpf…" To my shock, he fell asleep right where he was standing. I faltered and lowered my arrow. Grabbing my knife, I cautiously crept closer to him and began to poke him. He didn't move. I stomped on his foot, but he still didn't awaken. Instead, he fell right on top of me.

He was heavy! I put away my knife so as to not mistakenly stab him, and tried to shove him off of me. "Get the hell off of me!" Nothing. Why did this have to happen to me? Luckily, I was near the end of the forest and decided to just drag him over there.

My shoulder screamed in protest the entire way there, but I did not give up. If I left him in the forest, the idiot would be eaten by the animals. I would not be responsible for his death.

Once I made it out, I seriously considered throwing him down the hill. Sighing, I dragged him around the back of my house and into the back yard. I tossed him in the dried up vegetable garden and went inside. I locked the door behind me and told myself, 'when he wakes up, I'll tell him to go away. I'll never have to see this shirtless man again'

** So, I'm a terrible writer. I actually had to open up my previous chapter to check my character's name. (Face palms). I'm way too forgetful. **

**Thanks for reading!**


	3. Chapter 3  Sort of Introductions

** So, this kind of took me a while to write because I've been really busy between running Anime Club, being in band concerts, and going to championships for winter guard (we got a gold medal). It will probably be a couple weeks until I post again because my band is going to Disney World for our UIL contest. Just a heads up. So, thanks for the reviews and I hope you enjoy this.**

_ I locked the door behind me and told myself, 'when he wakes up, I'll tell him to go away. I'll never have to see this shirtless man again.'_

I walked over to the wash basin and began to wash the meat. The meat had acquired dust and hair from inside the sac and I had to again remind myself that I clean the meat onsite for the purpose of reducing the weight of my sac.

I finished cleaning the meat and lit a fire. If I didn't cook it now, it would attract animals into my house. I already had termites; I didn't need another visit from an unwanted animal. The monkey had done enough damage.

I had finished cooking all the meat and was putting it on the table to be packaged when I heard a knock on my back door. Strange, usually the angry men from the village preferred to knock on my front door. I would have ignored it like I always do when they knock, but something caused me to make my way over to the door.

"Who is it?"

"Ace," came the answer. Who the hell was Ace?

"Go away," I told him.

"I would if I could, but someone dragged me here and now I don't know where I am. Can I come in?" Oh, that was who.

"No."

"You know, I've never heard you say yes. Are you capable of it?" I stayed silent and decided not to answer his rude comment or the slightly nervous chuckle that followed it. He continued, "It's not exactly comfortable here. There's a lot of dirt and mosquitoes. Plus, it looks like it's going to rain, hard. It would be really nice to have a roof over my head," he pleaded.

I pondered the pros and cons of letting him into my home. He did have a point. I could see from my barred windows that the clouds were covering the moon and stars now. A storm was surely on its way. It would be cruel to leave him out in the rain. On the other hand, what did I owe this attractive man? Nothing. In fact, he owed me for not leaving him to die in the woods. Not to mention all the stories my old foster mother had told me about what could happen if I let a man into my house late at night. The attractive ones were the most dangerous. Self-preservation was key.

"Then, go down to the village," I called out.

"I don't know where it is," he answered; now impatient.

"Not my problem."

"At least tell me where I can find it."

"Go outside the gate and look for the bright lights at the bottom of the hill." There was a pause, and I heard footsteps leaving my backyard.

Finally, he was gone. I went to the wash basin and began to attempt to scrub the dried blood off of my face. It had caked on and refused to move. I scrubbed again and a meager portion of it came off. In place of the dried blood was a patch of red skin. I must have scrubbed harder than I thought. I finished removing the blood from my face, and began to rub it off of my arms. I was still in the process of this when I heard another knock. Only, this time it came from the front door. The village probably thinks I kidnapped their new member. They must have somehow not crossed paths when that man called Ace went back to the village. The safest action would be to ignore it. I decided to follow my logic instead of the gut feeling this time.

It knocked again. I liked this knock. It was soft, as though the owner didn't want to intrude. Was it possible that the villagers' hatred towards me had lessened any? I remembered the events that had occurred earlier today and decided that no, it was not possible. Rather, this must be some kind of trick to cause me to lower my guard. Then, they would strike.

I would not fall for their trap! I shuddered at the memory of my gullibility of one of their more violent trips to my home. Shaking my head back and forth; I dispelled the memories. Fear would not make them leave. If anything, it would only encourage them.

"You can't get in and I'm not opening the door so just go away," I called out in what I thought to be a loud and confident voice. The knocking continued, and I felt nearly certain that this was different from those times. However, I would not chance it. My shoulder still ached from earlier and I did not need a fractured wrist again. Last time the villagers came for a 'visit' they left me one as a parting gift; courtesy of the bread seller's boot. I couldn't have meat for weeks because I couldn't hunt. Even now, it would occasionally hurt if I lifted things that were too heavy. No, they would not get the best of me.

I was about to resume my mini bath when I heard a voice call out. It was muffled, but I recognized it as the man called Ace. Realizing my error in the fact that the front door was soundproof and there was no way he could have heard my responses; I pressed my ear against the door and called out, "Are you alone?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" I could tell from his voice that he was still annoyed.

"So, there's no one else with you," I pressed.

"Yes, there is no person or with me."

"Do you have any animals?" I thought of that damn monkey.

"What? No. No animals either. Can I come in now? I can barely see three inches in front of me."

"No,"

"Again with the no's. Ok, what will it take for you to let me in?"

I felt slightly guilty for all the trouble he was going through and decided to give him some reprieve from his problems. He seemed nice enough. I didn't think he had been corrupted by the villagers yet either. However, if I was going to do this, I was going to do this right. That meant pulling out all the stops.

"Remove all of your weapons and place them in the pot nearby." There was a pause as he looked around for said pot.

"It's still got a plant inside," he replied as though I was the idiot and not him.

"Just do it."

"Fine, fine."

I peered through the barred windows and watched him put his shotgun on the potted plant. I then remembered his devil's fruit ability. I would not let him burn down my cottage. "Wait there," I called out. I heard him sigh and mutter something about how there wasn't anything else he could do. I decided to be the mature one and ignored it.

I quickly ran to my wooden jewelry box and rummaged through it while looking for my sea stone bracelet. I pushed aside all the hand carved emblems and clasps. After reaching the bottom of the box, I found it under my necklace made of red wooden beads. I snatched it up and walked back to the front door. While I was going through my jewelry box I realized that I was in no hurry to let this stranger into my home. Therefore, there was no need to run back to him. On my way back I stopped at the table and picked up my knife.

After walking back to my door I told him, "You can't use your abilities in here."

"Wasn't planning on it."

"How do I know you aren't lying?"

"Uhm, well. What if I promise?"

"Not good enough."

"Then, well, I really don't know. You'll just have to trust me."

"Not gonna happen. Lucky for you I have an idea. When I open this door, stick your hand, and only your hand in. Nothing can be on it and you have to hold it perfectly still."

"Why?" He was obviously suspicious now. His voice was dripping with paranoia.

"You'll just have to trust me," I mocked.

"Ha-ha, no. It's a two way street, hun."

"Don't call me that. And if you must know. I'm going to put sea stone on you."

I heard a gasp and listened to the shirtless man pace and mutter to himself. "Of all the things…" was the phrase he repeated the most. Without thinking, I began to chuckle quietly. Wait, chuckle? I paused and marveled at the fact that I, Haruno, had chuckled due to someone else. Had I really just let my guard down that much? What was it about this shirtless man that caused me to feel so light hearted? I would never do this with anyone else; that was for sure. So why him?

"It must be because he's an idiot," I told myself.

My thought process was interrupted as he called back through the door. "How much sea stone," he asked.

"Just a little. It should only be enough to stop you from being a threat."

I waited as he considered his options. There weren't many. He could either submit to my demands, or he could wait outside in the soon to come rain. He must have realized that this wasn't much of a decision, for he soon agreed.

Cautiously, I began to open the door. His hand gradually entered. First his fingertips, then his joints, knuckles, thumb, hand, wrist, forearm. "That's enough! Don't go any farther." I didn't want any more of him in my home until he was powerless. I stuck the knife in my mouth between my teeth. I then grabbed both ends of the bracelet and tied them together on his wrist. I tied knot upon knot and piled them on top of each other. I used every knot I could think of. That bracelet would not come off while he was inside. I realized I would probably have to cut it to get it off of him. I didn't mind. I could just restring the beads to make another bracelet. I took my knife out of its resting place and again grasped the handle while holding it away from myself. "Okay, you can come in now, but slowly. And no sudden movements. This is your only warning."

"Warning?"

"Yes, warning."

"Umm, ok." Slowly he inched his way inside. He comically had his hands in the air as though he had been caught doing something he shouldn't have. I stifled a smile and told him to go sit at the table. He relaxed and began to walk in the direction I had pointed. I stepped outside and grabbed his weapon from the plant. It was a gun and it was shiny. That was pretty much all I could tell. "You know," I heard Ace say from the kitchen; "these arrows are really nice."

Arrows? I turned around to see him messing with my weapons. How could I make such a lapse in judgment? I put a stranger next to weapons after I had gone through painstaking lengths just to see to it that he had none. I darted over to him and snatched it right out of his hands. "Don't touch those!"

Ace looked from his hands to the arrow in mine and back again. "But they're really cool," he whined. Yes, whined.

"I don't care."

"Fine, but where did you buy those. Pops would love to have some of those for his other sons; though I'm not sure any of them are archers."

"Your pops is going to have to live without them because I didn't buy them." I ignored his odd choice of words to describe his brothers. I had a harder time in not wondering how he didn't know his brothers well enough to know if they were into arching. How many kids did this guy's dad have?

"Really, then where did you get them?"

"I made them."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah." I didn't hate this guy. He seemed as though he had a genuine interest in what we were talking about. He believed me as well. "I can prove it too," I informed him.

"Wow. How?"

"I mark all of my arrows," I picked an arrow and showed it to him. "See, right here in the bottom near the fletching. I always mark my nickname in hiragana right there." I was standing behind him and leaning over now. The close proximity was not lost on me, but I couldn't move away without making the awkward situation known to Ace.

"Oh yeah. I never asked you for your name. It's Runa? That's definitely unique."

I slapped my forehead. It wasn't boring to be around him, but his ignorance would be annoying after a while. Wait, after a while. How long did I plan to hang around him? He would be gone after the rain passes. I could not afford to get attached to him merely because he was the first man to be polite towards me in years.

"It's not Runa," I said harshly. "Like I said, it's just a nickname." I didn't bother to give out my name. He probably wouldn't care anyways.

"Oh, sorry. So what's your real name?"

I paused. Had he really just asked that? No one had bothered to ask my name since the incident. Not even Toby. I was known as the murderer by parents, the creepy girl by children, and monster by Toby's grandmother. Actually, the only reason Toby knew my name was because I volunteered that information when I first met him.

Should I tell him? It couldn't hurt, could it? Throwing caution to the winds, I decided to answer. "I-it's Haruna." Ace smirked and I instantly glared. He was mocking me, damnit! My temper spiked and I snarled. "What's so funny? If you have a problem, then get out."

The smirk on his face remained unfazed by my rude exclamation. "You stuttered," was all he said. Damn, he had noticed. "You don't seem like the type to be shy… Haru-chan."

"Don't call me that either," I growled, though I kind of liked that name. It sounded endearing and affectionate. But I wouldn't let myself fall into a false sense of security. "That's what caused this whole mess in the first place."

"Your name?"

"What?"

"You said, 'That's what caused this whole mess in the first place.' What did you mean by that?"

Again my foolishness had struck; putting me in an awkward place. There was really nothing I could do but tell him about the awful incident. Hesitantly, I began to open my mouth to tell the story.

**And cue the cliffhanger. :) Hope you enjoyed this. Sit tight till I get the next chapter up ok. Another fact you might find interesting. It's currently 1:54 am and I already posted this chapter on fanfiction, but I realized I forgot to write a summary. I had to take it down, right this, and then post it back up. Just another way to prove to you my forgetfulness.**


	4. Chapter 4 The First Night

**I would apologize for the late update, but I sort of warned you beforehand. I've been really busy and I still am. Now I finally have prom out of the way but I have to work on two auditions. Plus TAKS. So, it will probably be a while again. Hehe. Any ways, to make up for the time lapse, I made this chapter longer than normal. Enjoy!**

_Again my foolishness had struck; putting me in an awkward place. There was really nothing I could do but tell him about the awful incident. Hesitantly, I began to open my mouth to tell the story._

I closed it before I could utter a single word. I hardly knew him! It was none of his business. On the other hand, he would be going back to live with the village tomorrow. It would be nice if one person knew the truth. Of course, there was no guarantee that he would believe me over all of them. In the end, he would hate me. Just like everyone else. Kami-sama, I was only seventeen! Why should I have to deal with this?

"That's none of your concern," I replied instead.

His eyes narrowed in irritation. "Seriously? That's it? You just stood there for like three minutes and said nothing. I thought you were thinking of what to say."

"You were mistaken," I said stoically. I watched his irritation increase. After a moment of tension, it gave way to a sigh of what I believed to be defeat.

"Fine, don't tell me," he mumbled as he began to turn around to head towards my food. I couldn't help but watch the muscles of his abdomen ripple as be began to move. I could already feel my mouth slightly watering. Something would have to be done about this or I would explode.

"Stop," I exclaimed before he could turn his back to me. He turned around and faced me in confusion and I again was slightly mesmerized by his torso.

"What?"

"You need a shirt."

"A shirt?"

"Yes, a shirt. Stay there, and don't you dare touch my food." His eyes widened to resemble a kicked puppy. Yet, I felt no guilt. "I mean it. If I find any of it missing, then you sleep outside. I won't remove the Sea Stone either."

"That's cruel."

"Maybe it is. I don't really care. Don't touch my food. If you need, you can use the wash basin to freshen up. You're filthy and covered in mud."

"You're not looking much better. You're covered in blood. Besides, you're the one who dumped me in some rotted plants."

I glared at him. How dare he! I was giving him shelter and he responded like that! Although, I wasn't exactly being hospitable either. I was snapped out of my thoughts by a hand being waved in my face. "Hello," Ace called, "you alright?"

"Yeah," I answered.

"Are you sure? You keep dazing off"

"I'm fine," I replied with an edge. I warned him again to not touch my food and left to head for my room. Once inside the cramped quarter, I maneuvered myself around the bed that took up almost the entirety of my bedroom and lifted the lid of my chest that contained my shirts. I had to have a larger shirt. This guy's torso was massive. After taking a thorough look, I realized that none of my shirts would be large enough for him. I was simply too narrow to compare to him.

"You know…" I heard a voice say from my door way.

Cursing, I whirled around to face him and lost my balance.

He began to take a step into my room as he said, "Hey, are you okay?"

"Don't move! Stay out of my room," I ordered as I lay sprawled out on the floor.

"What," he deadpanned.

"Just don't." I used this moment to observe that he had used my wash basin and was now perfectly clean except for a smudge of mud along his abs. Oh, the abs. The pleasant direction my thoughts were heading was interrupted as he continued our discussion.

"I'd ask why, but I have a feeling you would tell me that it's none of my concern."

"You are correct," I stated; trying to regain my composure. This was not completely effective as I was still on the floor. "Now, go back to the kitchen."

He raised an eyebrow. "Isn't that my line," he joked.

"That's hardly amusing. Just try this on in the kitchen," I said while tossing him the largest shirt I could find. Coincidently it was purple and probably wouldn't fit him well.

"You know, I…"

"Just do it!" Could he not do anything I asked?

He left quietly but I could feel his annoyance emanating throughout the shack. As if he had a reason to be annoyed. Haphazardly, I brought myself to my feet and began to make my way out of my room and into the kitchen. I paused at my doorway in realization. He was agitated, yet I wasn't attempting to make amends. I was confident around him. Why? Shaking my head I pushed these troublesome thoughts to the recesses of my mind and continued to head towards the kitchen. When I arrived, I doubled over in laughter. He was wearing my shirt, but it was way too tight. The color only added to my amusement.

"You could be polite and stop laughing," he informed me with a grimace.

"No thanks."

"Of course not."

"You know," I teased, "that color compliments your complexion."

"Oh really now," he said while striking a pose. "I must say, I agree. It makes my figure look amazing. But I think it also makes me look a little fat. What do you think," he joked.

At the mention of the word 'figure' my eyes drifted again towards what was once bare. This shirt did not do him justice. It was tight, but it bunched up and covered the bumps along his stomach. It looked ridiculous! The bottom of my shirt reached just below his belly button; giving an appearance of attempted femininity. I almost preferred him without a shirt, but that would be too distracting. He was too distracting. I was forgetting myself. How dare he make me flustered!

"I think it makes you look gay," I replied.

He sighed, almost as though he had expected an answer of that sort. "You know. You really should decide already."

"On what?"

"Whether you hate me or not."

"Of course I hate you." There was no way I couldn't. Right?

"Sure doesn't seem like it."

"You're just too dense."

"Then why are you occasionally nice to me. You're even giving me shelter," he said while inching towards my food, again.

"You are once again mistaken. I've already told you not to…" My reprimand was interrupted by a ripping sound that echoed throughout my hut. The idiot had bent over to try and reach the food. He thought I hadn't noticed, the fool. Now my shirt was ripped along the back and was dangling loosely off of his arms.

"Oops," he said while noticing my glare. In all honestly, the glare wasn't for my lost shirt. It was more for the fact that I was again staring at this guy's freaking godly upper half. Unfortunately, there was only one thing to be done.

I turned around and started to walk to my room again. "Stay here, I'll go find you another shirt," I told him over my shoulder.

"You know. I have another shirt." That caused me to pause. I turned around slowly; seething with anger.

"You have what," I asked quietly. My head was looking at the floor so that I wouldn't strangle this idiot when I saw his overly perky face.

"I tried telling you earlier, but you wouldn't listen," he implored.

I took a deep breath and slowly let it out. "Whatever. Just put it on."

I turned away and rummaged through my groceries. I grabbed peaches, apples, pineapples, and grapes. 'A fruit salad would be nice' I thought to myself. I ignored the sounds of rummaging that Ace was creating while looking through his own bag. I walked over to a different wash basin near the fireplace and washed the fruit.

"Anything I can do to help," Ace asked from somewhere behind me.

"No." I did not need him to cut these up with a knife. Like hell if I would give him a weapon. The meat was cooked and he wouldn't know how to season it correctly. Plus, I didn't need him to poison anything.

"I'm not going to poison you, you know." I froze and whirled to face him.

"Wha…," I began to say before I saw his expression. It was one of his teasing expressions, though, how I knew that I couldn't tell. What I could tell was that he obviously had no idea as to what I was thinking. He just had pure dumb luck. The idiot.

Huffing I turned around and continued washing. After that, I ignored him completely while cooking. The plates were set and soon we were ready to eat.

Ace had been watching me the entire time and sat down immediately. "So, what kind of meat is this," he asked. I looked at him and noticed his black t-shirt. It fit much better than any shirt I could have offered and, although my pride was slightly bruised, I was glad that it would no longer cause a distraction for me.

"Don't worry about it," I answered.

"How can I not?"

"Don't think about it. Pretend it's chicken." Weren't guys reputed for being able to eat large amounts of food regardless of taste? Why was he being so picky?

"Kind of hard not to worry about it when I'm wondering what I'm eating. For all I know, this could be monkey."

"Don't be ridiculous. I wouldn't kill a monkey." He visibly relaxed. "They travel in groups so I'd have to kill all of them. I don't have enough arrows for that. Plus, they don't taste nearly as good as fox."

"Am I going to eat fox?"

I could see him mistrustfully eyeing the meat. "No. Now, look at me." He did so. I took a bite and waited for him to do the same. After a few seconds he complied to my unspoken demand.

"Not bad," he admitted. I smirked. He then began to shovel the rest of his food into his mouth at an ungodly rate. Once finished, he took the entire bowl of fruit salad and ate it as well. Due to a lack of food left; he patiently waited to be dismissed from the table. I had no intention of allowing him to walk around my house if he was out of my sight so I refused to tell him that he could rise. Instead, I watched him slightly squirm in his seat with a sadistic pleasure. Where had Mr. Confident gone, eh.

My boastful thoughts were interrupted by a growling sound. There was no way. That could not have come from his stomach. I gave him a glare which he returned with a sheepish grin. "Sorry," he said, "habit. I'm fine though."

Sighing, I shoved my plate of food across the table. "Eat," I commanded.

"But…"

"I'm not hungry," I lied.

I stared at him for the rest of dinner. Due to his fast pace of eating, it lasted for only five minutes; if even. "You can wash the dishes," I informed him. He pouted but stood and began to do the dishes. I left him to make my way back into my room and grab some blankets for myself. As I was gathering them I heard the rain through my walls. My sixth sense once again proved to be infallible. I exited and began to lay the blankets on my straw couch. Ace came in not long after and stretched. "Ooh, that looks comfy."

"I'll let you know how it felt in the morning."

"Eh," he deadpanned.

"You get to sleep under the stars,"

"You mean the rain. The stars are hiding."

"Then why don't you find them."

"You're joking right?"

"You saw my porch in the back yard. You'll be fine."

"But it's raining."

"Then you won't have any unwanted visitors."

"The rain drops are unwanted visitors."

"You're an unwanted visitor." He began to argue again but I cut him off, "look, you are not sleeping in this house unless I chain you up and tie you to something. Do you really think you can sleep like that?" He looked away in defeat. "Good, now go."

"Will you at least take the sea stone off?"

"No, and if I find it missing I'll destroy all of your belongings in this bag," I said while holding up said bag.

"A hostage, really?"

"Yes."

"Fine." He left to go outside and I closed the door behind him while locking it. Then I proceeded to bunch up the blankets to resemble a person should he break into my house. I then checked all the doors and made sure they were locked. On my way to my bed hidden in my secret basement, I stopped to check on him. I listened to him through the back door to make sure he was still there. Instead of hearing him snore I heard another growl. He was still hungry? Oh well, I wasn't going to bother feeding him again. I grabbed a candle and struck a match to it. I then used it to open the latch under my table and make my way down the stairs. Once I reached the bottom, I blew out the candle and crawled into the bed. Just as I was falling asleep, my own stomach growled.


	5. Chapter 5 Talentless Gunmanship

I awoke to the same sound the next morning. Damn, why did I give him my food? Fatigue, that's what it must have been. I continued to delude myself with these falsities as I heaved my aching body out of the bed. I was so sore! The dead weight idiot I had carried home must have caused me to exert myself more than I thought. Once again, he had caused me an inconvenience. Not that it mattered. Sure, it would make hunting tonight all the more difficult, but I would never see him again. I felt my way over to the candle that lay on the nightstand next to my bed. After lighting it, I struggled to change shirts in the emergency box that harbored a single set of spare clothing. My shoulder was aching worse than before. I had believed the pain to be gone for good when it had stopped bothering me during my meal. Apparently, I was very, very wrong. I gave up on my shirt and decided to change my pants in an effort to give my joint a break. The pants were much easier to put on, and soon I had nothing left to do but again attempt to slip my arm through my sleeve. I succeeded after many failed attempts, but not without pain. Clutching my shoulder with one hand, I grabbed the candle with the other and made my way up the steps towards the trap door.

I gently pushed on the hatch and listened for any sounds. There were none, so I eagerly lifted the hatch the rest of the way with my good arm. I lifted it too quickly and it slammed into the table that was positioned over it. The force of the initial collision caused the hatch to come slamming down on my head; nearly knocking me down the steps. Grumbling angrily, I again opened it and crawled out from underneath. Once out, I took notice of a putrid stench. Carefully, I gathered a whiff of myself and nearly gagged. I smelt terrible! Cleaning blood off of myself obviously didn't count as a real bath. I tiptoed over to my back door and listened for any sounds of Ace being awake. It was silent. Odd, I pictured Ace as being a snorer. My observation skills must be slightly lacking. Of course, my eyes were rather preoccupied last night.

Shaking my head to dispel those thoughts, I made my way over to my room and hauled out a wooden tub. I set my spare bathing water over the stove and started to heat it up. Whilst doing so, I rummaged around for breakfast. Unfortunately, I had used all of my food last night for that bottomless pit of a stomach. It looked like I had no choice and would have to wander down the hill again whether I was sore or not. Maybe the hot bath would help. Speaking of which… I looked over only to notice that the water was boiling. Crap! It wasn't supposed to be that hot. Disgruntled, I poured the boiling water into the tub and grabbed my cool drinking water. I added it to the water in an attempt to lower the temperature. Gently, I lowered my pinky finger into the water only to yank it back out. Although the water was no longer boiling, it was still really hot. My day was already off to a bad start. I had no more water; therefore, the only thing to do was to wait for the water to cool down. I waited for at least ten minutes before I retested it. It was still really hot, but it was bearable. I again checked all the doors to be certain that they were secure. There was still no sound coming from the back door.

Just now considering this possibility, I checked around the hut as well. He was not I here, so he must be sleeping out there. I quickly stripped and sank into the water, hissing as the heat touched the cuts on my knees. I had forgotten about those as well, and now they were screaming their indignation. Regardless, I steeled myself against the pain and attempted to relax. It didn't work. Giving up, I bent my knees so that they could escape the heat. After doing so, I could finally relax. I let the heat work at my shoulder. After I decided that my shoulder had had enough pampering, I began to scrub. By the time I was finished, the water was a light brown. I was just getting back into my clothing when I heard the gate to my backyard close. Who was entering my garden? Was Ace in danger? I knew he had fire, but he was wearing sea stone. I jumped out of the water and grabbed a towel while rushing out towards the door. On my way there I grabbed the gun I had 'acquired' from Ace. I would be able to fire it single handedly while using the other to hold my towel up. Reaching the door; I fumbled with the locks in my haste. I had to pause to finish rewrapping my towel around myself. After my second attempt at the many locks, I succeed. I yanked the door open and ran out gun first onto the stone pathway.

I aimed at the first object in motion and nearly pulled the trigger before I heard a surprised grunt. Taking a precious chance, I glanced towards the figure I was aiming at and nearly dropped my only means of protection. My gun was aiming straight at the chest of Ace! He had frozen into a comically amusing stance. His hands were in the air. One was open in an 'I surrender' gesture and the other was holding something.

"Uhmmmm, whatever I did, I apologize for doing it." I could only gawk. Why the hell had he left the damn yard in the first place? Ace never took his eyes off of the gun in my hand. "Look, normally I'm really patient, but I can't exactly dodge that gun. Plus, with the sea stone, that gun is actually a pretty big threat. It's also pretty heavy." He was right about that. The gun had been slightly drooping from the moment I pointed it. I decided to listen to his request and let the gun hang at my side, though I didn't release my finger from the trigger. Just in case.

Ace visibly sagged with relief. "Thanks," he said before his face began to redden considerably. Confusion clouded my face as he stared determinedly at my face.

"Problem?"

"Uhm, could you maybe put some clothes on?" My eyes widened, and I glanced down at my attire.

"Crap," I exclaimed as I realized the cause of his sudden reaction. In my surprise, I clenched my fists. The next thing I noticed was a loud bang and a stinging sensation in my leg. I shrieked and nearly dropped the towel I was wearing. I clenched my fists again and heard another bang. Before I could react, a hard body pressed against my back and a large hand covered my own whilst twisting the gun out of my hands.

"Kami-sama! Haven't you ever held a freaking gun before," he yelled into my ear. I dropped down to my knees and covered both of my ears in fear. I clenched the towel with my elbows to keep it secure. My ear was still ringing and I continued to think of the most random things I could in an effort to close out any more yelling that he may be doing. This continued for what seemed like a split second as I slightly rocked back and forth on my knees. They were once again throbbing, but I focused on that pain to ignore any other sounds. This routine was interrupted when I felt a hand on my shoulder; causing me to jump in fright. Another hand gently tapped one of my hands. I refused to allow it to budge, but I did listen to the muted sounds. There was no yelling amongst them. Slowly, I uncapped my hands from my ears. The hand was still on my shoulder and I defiantly glared up towards its owner.

Ace gave an embarrassed and slightly worried smile while he lifted his hand and offered it instead. I slapped it away and unsteadily rose to my feet. Ignoring the pain in my knees and calf; I made my way inside. Before Ace could enter, I slammed the door in his face.

**Yeah, this took a while due to exams at the end of the year, and guard camp at the beginning of summer. I started the next chapter but it may take a while again. So, hope you enjoyed it.**


	6. Chapter 6 Lectures

_Before Ace could enter, I slammed the door in his face._

I was about to bolt the locks when I heard his voice through the door.

"Uhm, about what just happened, I apologize. I didn't mean to frighten you." I remained silent. I refused to admit, even to myself, that my anger had dissipated immediately following his apology. The only feeling I now felt was a weakness in my knees that was still present after the shock. "Look, if you're still mad, at least accept a peace offering. I brought back some bacon." Bacon? How did he know my weakness for bacon? Wait, he didn't even have any bacon. That object in his hand was not bacon!

"Liar," I seethed.

"Well, I brought back a pig. We could turn it into bacon."

I was sorely tempted to tell him to take the pig to the village and get the hell away from me. I nearly did so, but the growling of my stomach prevented that. Snarling, I threw open the door. Ace must have been surprised, because his eyes nearly popped out of his head. He turned his head to the side. "I-I could wait here while you go put some clothes on." Okay, maybe that wasn't why his eyes were huge.

"Get in," I growled. Ace walked in and headed straight for the couch while avoiding me with his eyes. He was about to sit down when he jumped.

"Sorry, I didn't know she had another guest," he said to the lump hidden underneath the blankets. I raised a single eyebrow at him and waited; silently counting the seconds until he would realize that it was merely an inanimate object. He continued, "Really, I hope I didn't offend you. Uhm, I suppose it makes sense for you to ignore me. I did just nearly sit on you, but please don't think I have a bad personality because of it. I'm usually really easy to get along with. I've been told I'm very sociable, or was it gullible? Anyways, I'd really appreciate it if you would accept my apology, unless you're sleeping. Then I was probably bothering you. Oh no, I might still be bothering you! I hope I didn't wake you with my talking. I'm very sorry if I did. In fact, I think I'll just walk away now." I lost count. I stalked my way over to the couch and yanked the blanket off. I then went to my room to change into a long skirt with shorts underneath. I was sure he could figure it out now. At least, I hoped he could.

Once I finished pulling my shirt over my head, I went back towards the main area. I saw Ace lightly bouncing on the couch as though he were a child. I stood there dumbfounded. Where did all his energy come from? Not to mention his demeanor. He seemed simpleminded most of the time, but then he had his moments of complete seriousness. When the gun was going off, his personality seemed to change along with his entire self. I blocked the memories of what happened after and was about to turn around to start cooking the boar he had caught when Ace called out to me. "Oi, Haru-chan. Come sit."

"I said not to call me that," I scolded while walking toward him and sitting on the opposite end of the couch, as far away from him as possible. He noticed.

He rested his hands behind his head in an image of pure ease as his eyes examined me carefully. "So," he began, "I already apologized. Mind telling me why you curled up into a ball back there?" Cocky bastard.

"I just don't like yelling," I replied nonchalantly.

"Why not?"

"That's…"

"None of my concern, right?" He flashed a cheeky grin my way.

"Precisely."

"I still want to know though." Nosy brat. Wait, wasn't he older than me? He definitely didn't act like it. I decided to indulge him; telling myself that it was merely to prevent any further argument.

"Nothing good comes from yelling. It's either the peak of a disagreement, or it leads to more violent arguments. It signals the near loss of control. It is, in its simplest form, a warning." There's always yelling. Yelling means they're angry. When they're angry, they start to hit things, or people. I softly grabbed my wrist.

Ace's eyes narrowed marginally, showing me a peak at that serious personality that I had fleetingly glimpsed previously. Yet, he did not ask me about my wrist. Instead, he plastered on a smile that seemed genuine and told me in a cheerful voice, "But arguments can be good as well. They can clear tension between two friends. It's also another way to tell someone your feelings. Arguing shows you care about someone, something, an event, or just in general. If you didn't care, you wouldn't show your passionate feelings through arguing. You would just keep silent and carry on."

"I never said arguing was bad. Arguing is fine; it's yelling that is bad. And who are you to lecture me? It is unnecessary."

"Probably, but you could use a lecture on manners. I mean, I had to sleep outside if you recall. Your poor guest was freezing last night! I mean, I thought this was supposed to be a tropical climate." He was obviously trying to lighten the mood. It worked and I could feel a small smile reach my lips.

"It usually is. We had a cold front come through a couple of day ago. As for the guest matter, you are not a guest. If anything, you are a moocher who ate all of my food."

"I carried a pig that I caught for you all the way to your door. It's laying outside right now, ready to be cooked."

"And how much of that pig will you eat. I have no doubt in my mind that you could eat all of it and still be hungry."

"That's why I caught five others. They're right outside your gate; waiting to be cooked. We could have ham, bacon, eggs, ooh and hash browns. I also heard from our ship's cook that you can make sausage out of pig as well. I would love some sausage. Can we have some sausage too? Please?"

I sighed. This guy had a seemingly one track mind when it came to food. "I have a rotisserie in the back yard. We can have ham. As for bacon, I would have made it even if you were allergic. I have no chickens. So no, you can't have any eggs. I may have one or two semi-good potatoes left in the garden, but you'll have to look for them. I refuse to."

"Deal!" His face resembled that of a small child on Christmas. He was so easy to please. He bounced up and made his way outside. I got up much more slowly due to the pain in my calf and shoulder. I couldn't see my leg, due to my long brown skirt. I was sure it was just a scrape though. As for my knees, the pain was nothing new. I didn't feel like going grab any bandages anyways. Besides, I was sure they had stopped bleeding by now. At least, I hoped they had. I made my way towards the door where Ace was waiting for me. On my way out, he suddenly exclaimed, "Wait, is it even possible to be allergic to bacon?"

**There ya go. I decided to get the chapter out sooner rather than later because I'm going to be busy for the next two weeks. I apologize for any grammar mistakes, but it is currently 1:26 am. I am kind of sort of half asleep. So, hope ya'll enjoy anyways.**


	7. Chapter 7 Comfort

_I made my way towards the door where Ace was waiting for me. On my way out, he suddenly exclaimed, "Wait, is it even possible to be allergic to bacon?"_

I rolled my eyes as I passed him. Honestly, this guy was so dense. I continued to make my way to the pit in my yard. My footsteps were slightly uneven, but I was not limping. 'The pain in my calf is bearable' I repeated to myself. Once I made it to the rotisserie, I turned around to stare at Ace. The guy was still where I last saw him; standing in my doorway. His eyes were slightly narrowed at me. "Quit staring and grab a pig," I snapped.

"Jeez. For someone who hates yelling, you sure do it a lot," he retorted as he walked towards me; completely ignoring the boar that was slumped along the stone path. He scratched his head as he continued walking. "So, what's up with your leg?"

"Absolutely nothing,"

"That concerns me, right?"

I paused. This guy was getting a big head. "No, there is simply nothing wrong with my leg."

"Liar,"

"False,"

"Then why were you limping?"

"Why can't you grab a damn pig?"

That threw him for a loop. He paused in his tracks and indignantly exclaimed, "I carried six of them all the way to your house! Do you know how heavy one of them is? Look at that one. Do you see how plump it is? So are all the others." His eyes were comically huge and his mouth was hanging open afterwards. His neck was pushed out as though that would help convince me of the pigs' quality. "Obviously, I can carry a pig."

"Prove it," I retorted. I had succeeded in distracting him.

"Fine." He turned around and stalked towards the pig. While he bent over, I couldn't help but notice how the shirt he was still wearing strained over his shoulders. My viewing party was interrupted when he straightened up and turned to walk back towards me. I hoped that he hadn't seen me. "What was it you told me earlier? Quit staring, right?" He smirked. Arrogant, cocky, son of a …

My rant was cut short when he plopped the pig at my feet. "What now," he asked.

"Take the stake and plop it through its mouth and out through the rear. Then we'll hang it up and turn it till it's crisp."

His face paled considerably. "That can't be all. You're joking, right?" His smirk was gone.

I smirked in his place. "Yes, I'm joking."

"Great! So, what do we actually do?"

"Do you know how to skin a pig and clean it out?"

He looked at me wearily and replied with hesitation. "Yeah."

"Then do it."

He visibly relaxed. "Thank Kami-sama. I thought you were going to try to kick me out again."

Now I was confused. "What for?"

"I don't know. You're so huge on safety. Maybe my ability to process an animal makes me too much of a threat to keep any longer."

"That's ridiculous." He smiled in relief. "Who said I was going to keep you? You're leaving as soon as we finish cooking and eating these things."

It could have been my imagination, but I thought I saw his shoulders droop. There's no way he was reluctant to leave. Even if I could admit to myself that I slightly enjoyed his company, and was slightly reluctant to walk him back to the village, there was no way he could feel the same.

"I know."

"Then get skinning."

"Alright. I'll do it after I take a look at your leg." I guess he wasn't so easily distracted.

"No."

"Why not?"

"I'll do it myself later."

"You're limping _now_," he deadpanned. "If you haven't fixed it yet, I doubt you're going to do it at all."

"Not your problem."

"Ooh, a change of diction."

"Yes."

"Don't change the subject."

"Too bad."

"Just let me see."

"No."

"Alright. Fine," he said as he turned around to pick up the pig. I turned around to finish heating up the rotisserie, but I was suddenly tackled from behind. "C'mon. Quit being so stubborn and just admit you got shot."

"I didn't get shot you idiot. I saw the bullet hit the ground," I cried as we struggled. He was trying to force me over to the porch. Unfortunately, he was also succeeding.

"You can't see a bullet. They move too fast."

"Maybe you can't, but I can," I lied.

"Quit lying and just sit down." We were at the freaking porch already! The guy moves fast.

"No! Now get off of me, or no breakfast for you." He got off immediately. Predictable.

"Alright fine. How about his? I'm not leaving until I see what's wrong with your leg."

"There's nothing wrong!" Why wouldn't he just leave me alone? I would never get rid of him. Plus, I was starving. The creep ate my freaking supper!

"Prove it. The sooner you do, the sooner we eat and I leave."

"Fine!" They were just scraped knees and sore muscles. Not that big a deal. I yanked my skirt up to my knees and gasped. Blood was dripping down my leg! I sad down on the steps of the porch in surprise.

Ace smirked. "Told ya so." That snapped me out of my shock and I sent him a growl.

"It's not too bad," I snarled.

"It's dripping," he deadpanned.

"So?"

"So, even if it's not that bad, it's not great either. Now, stay here. I'm going to go grab some bandages."

"You don't know where my first aid kit is," I stated smugly.

"Never said I was gonna use yours. Fortunately I know where you put mine."

I seethed as he went inside the house to grab his bag. I was uncomfortable sitting without a backing so I scooted over to one of the pillars and leaned against it. He came back with the bag sooner than I had expected. He narrowed his eyes at my change in position, but nonetheless sat down next to me and began to rifle through his belongings; placing anything that wasn't what he was looking for next to him. Eventually he found it and looked at me expectantly. I would not make this easy for him. I stared back with a raised eyebrow. "Leg please." I continued to stare at him in mock confusion. He stared back at me in challenge. This was a battle of wills. I would not lose. He'd been getting his way far too much lately; the housing, the food, my leg. It was my turn to succeed in something. We continued in our competition. My glare versus his infuriatingly calm gaze. The growling of my stomach interrupted our match, but it did not end it. At least, not for me. Ace, however, glanced down and began to laugh. I would have smacked him up top the head if his hadn't sounded as well; causing me to smirk. "So, how about you let me take a look at your leg and then we'll go eat," Ace asked; taking advantage of the friendly atmosphere.

I sighed in defeat, though I could still feel myself smiling just a little. "Alright fine," I conceded, "But only for the sake of breakfast."

"I can live with that." I placed my leg in his lap and watched him begin to wrap up my leg. He was taking his time while he wrapped my calf with deft hands. He obviously had experience with this sort of thing. I stared at the clouds and dazed off while he finished up. "You know, your knee bandages are filthy too."

"Don't push it," I told him while still gazing upwards.

"I'm just saying. I have extra bandages and I don't mind using them." I was too comfortable to protest and just nodded my head in consent. The clouds were so peaceful. When was the last time I just sat down and relaxed? My calf wasn't hurting too much anymore. This moment was just so blissful. I wasn't alone either. The feeling of knowing that someone was with me, even if I didn't know him very well, was comforting. I smiled as I felt myself drifting off into unconsciousness.

**So, I know it's been a while, but ya'll were warned. I'm currently in a bit of writers block. This is either due to summer screwing with my brain, or just plain laziness. So, if you have ideas for what should happen while they eat breakfast before they go down to the village, let me know. I also need ideas for what will happen once they get to the village. Just send me a private message on your thoughts.**


	8. Chapter 8

I must have taken a nap as Ace was finishing up because the next thing I knew, the scent of drizzling bacon was permeating through my nostrils. I slowly cracked one eye open and chanced a glance. There he stood over the pit rotating the thin strips of pig; a plate full of bacon nearly half his height lay at his side. It was slightly swaying and looked as though it could topple over any second. I would have closed my eyes again if not for his greeting.

"Good morning… again."

"I suppose it might be," I wryly replied.

His bark of laughter startled me completely out of my drowsy state and I chose to stand this time instead of lean back against the pillar. I slowly made my way towards him. "I see you've been covering breakfast."

"Yep. After the first couple of tries, I really got the hang of cooking. I'm a master chef now."

His arrogant attitude struck me as funny and I decided to mock him for it. "Well then, Master of breakfast, where are the potatoes, the eggs, and the sausage? I only see bacon and there's only one pig left."

His eyes widened and his mouth popped open. "I knew I was forgetting something," he exclaimed. He immediately dashed to the remains of my garden and began to dig, throwing dirt in all directions. I chuckled and decided to help him out by making the sausage. By the time I was finished he had come back to me with a look of utter defeat. "I couldn't find any," he solemnly reported.

"That's because there are none," was my response.

"What, you knew?"

"Of course I did. It's my garden. If there was food in it, I would have found it days ago."

"So, the point of promising hash browns made from non-existent potatoes was?"

"So that I could make the sausage without worrying that you would eat all the bacon before I could have any," I finished.

"What about the eggs?"

"I already told you, no chickens."

"What if I go find some?"

"I'll lock the gate and eat all the food on my own."

"Che, like you could."

"Is that a challenge?"

"It's a fact, because I'm going to eat all the food before you can," he replied while inching towards the bacon.

"That's a shame," I said while smirking.

He stopped and glanced back at me, "What is?"

"That you let your guard down." I began running towards the food, munching on the sausage as I went.

"You've got to be kidding me!" He began to race me. Of course, he beat me considering I was injured, but I made it in time to grab the bacon out of his hands before he could shove it down his throat. What ensued next was a mix between a wrestling match and a food eating contest. We would steal each other's food and try to eat it before it was stolen back. In the end, we were both left full and content. "I easily ate the most," he boasted.

"Are you kidding me, you eat like an anorexic," I lied.

The laughs that followed were loud and carefree. "Is that so? Well in that case, I can certainly eat more. Shall we have another round?"

"With what food," I asked in an attempt to cover up the fact that I was completely full.

"Well, after eating all of that, let's say we work it off and see who can get the most food by lunchtime."

"You're on, but you have to dispose of all the pig carcasses on your own while I get a head start."

"What? Why?"

"Because you have an unfair advantage, I said, gesturing towards the fireplace."

"Not at the moment I don't."

"Alright, clean all this up and then I will allow you to have one, if you can find me when you're done." I raised an eyebrow playfully.

"Alright then. In three, two, one… GO!" I began my mad dash to the door to the gate as Ace began to grab every pig in sight. I was almost to the door when a large banging emitted from it, the source of the noise residing on the other side.

They were knocking so hard the gates were shaking. "Hey," a man called, "Are you there? Answer me!"

"Y-yes!" I called back. I felt a heat behind me and knew that Ace had come to see what was going on. He placed a hand on my unhurt shoulder.

"There's a pirate crew in town!"

I stiffened. I was slightly confused. Why would they warn me about a pirate crew? The town welcomed pirates because of their riches. They even frequently hid them from the marines… for a price, of course. I made no secret of my dislike for pirates. They were often raunchy and cruel. They cost more than they paid for, from what I could see. But the town had never cared for my wishes. Why would they suddenly decide to warn me?

"One of their members is missing. He didn't come back to the boat last night. The mayor wants to be sure that you didn't do anything to him. Have you seen anything?"

"Of course not!" The man behind me was a traveler of some sort. I turned around to face him.

"You can follow him back to the village," I told him. "He is your best bet to avoid suspicion."

"I'm good. I don't really like him. You're much nicer. At least for the moment you are." He flashed his teeth in a playful smile. I gaped at him.

"So, you're going to continue to impose on me and my house," I asked him while struggling to keep a straight face.

"It sure as hell didn't seem like I was imposing. In fact I could have sworn you had just invited me to stay for lunch through that game of yours."

"You stated that you were still hungry. I felt bad because I had beaten you and managed to eat more than you."

We were very close now. Earlier this morning I would have said too close, but something about him just makes me want to be closer. I took a step back. This would not happen.

"And there you go again," he said sagely. Despite his words he seemed to enjoy my reluctance.

"If you see him," the guy bellowed behind the gate, startling us out of our reverie, "send him back to town. And if he stays gone, we'll come looking for him." He said this last part threateningly, and I knew, if that pirate didn't turn up, they would come rampaging through my home in search of him. I heard his footsteps leaving the area and, with a sigh, I turned back to Ace. Only, he wasn't where I thought he would be. Instead, he was picking up all the pigs again and looking at me expectantly.

"Burn the carcasses, I will use them as fertilizer," I told him. I was thinking more clearly now and decided that my future with my garden was more important than a silly game. He did as instructed and I went inside to wash my hands of the grease. When I was finished I went to open the back door. He was standing there with his hands covered in ashes.

"I decided to save you the trouble and did it myself."

"Thank you." I let him inside to wash his hands and I went to survey his work. He had done a surprisingly good job. I heard a noise at the gate and turned to look. He was there, trying to open it.

"So, how about that game?" he asked. I smiled, opened the gate, and then ran ahead. I called behind me, "Whoever brings the most back by high noon wins!" I could hear his laughter behind me as he ran to catch up.

**Hi, it's been another while. But I had no suggestions and so I was like, what now. But after an unexpected visit to the facebook page of Portgas D. Ace, my writers block vanished and this came out in the course of a morning. So, tada!**


	9. Chapter 9 Bridge to Tomorrow

Our game ended with a feast for an early dinner. The sun was high in the air as we cooked the meat in the rekindled fire pit and set everything on the table. The wood literally creaked as we lessened the substantial amount of food into our bellies. I had never felt so full. That evening, with bellies full and a sun only just starting to set, we began our descent from the hill to the village. It was a quiet affair with a heavy feeling in the air. Would this be the end of our companionship? I was hesitant to call it a friendship as I had only known him for a day, but I had never felt lighter than I did with him. I couldn't recall the last time I had laughed so freely, alone or otherwise. I didn't want to say goodbye and return to the lifestyle I had led before. I didn't want to spend my days where the foremost thought in my mind was survival rivaled only by safety from others. My thoughts only spiraled more and more into the bottomless pit that housed all of the dark things in my life. It wasn't until Ace let out a long and loud sigh that I looked up from the ground and raised an eyebrow in question. "This is too dull," he whined. Then he stopped walking completely. "Let's race!" He declared with a contagious grin on his face. _Anything to get rid of the depression I'm heading towards_, I thought to myself.

"Fine," I replied. I stopped walked and turned back to stand next to his side.

"On the count of three," he began. "One, two, three." He took off and I followed behind. The race was exhilarating and did serve to raise my spirits. For a moment I forgot what we were racing towards and my laughter bubbled up and out into the air. At one point, my foot got caught on a branch and I tumbled down the hill. Though this earned me multiple scrapes, it also helped me advance to a position in front of him. He called out behind me, "No fair, cheater!" I ignored him as I speed along. Finally, I slowed down as we reached the end of the hill. Dizzy and disoriented, I sat up. Ace eventually caught up and I could hear him both gasp for breath and laugh it out before his lungs could even process it. "Oh, man. I can't decide if that was hilarious or genius." He offered me a hand and I tried to grab it. I missed because it kept moving and multiplying, though he assured me it wasn't. Eventually, he grabbed me underneath my arm pits and hauled me to my feet. He continued to grin as he waited for me to take the lead, but I refused to go any farther.

"The village is right there," I said as I pointed to the village nearly 100 yards away. After that I was at a loss for words. We stared at each other and his grin slowly began to fall. All of the moments we had shared within only a day came reeling through my mind and my throat began to block up. His mouth began to form words, but before I could hear them, I turned around and began hiking back up the hill.

A hand caught my elbow and forced me to a standstill. Wordlessly, I stood there, waiting for him to change his mind and leave, but he didn't. Instead he wordlessly turned me around to face him and stared into my eyes. Before I could blink, he pried my jaw open and gazed down the open cavern. "ahhhnnnuuaaah," I protested. I tried to knee him in the stomach as an attempt to force him to let me go, but he dodged it and took two steps back. At least my jaw was free.

"Hmmmmm," he hummed with a mischievous glint in his eye. "Your throat looks fine to me. Is there a reason you're not saying goodbye?"

The silence hung in the air between us before I finally managed to sum up the courage to explain my reason for the quick retreat. "I had… fun." I couldn't look at him as I said this and blushed while scratching the back of my neck.

"Oh no, I am so sorry. I can't believe my presence caused you such an inconvenience. However will I compensate you for such a great insult?" He joked.

"No," I explained. "It was… nice. The racing was nice, and the food was delicious, and your jokes were actually funny, and the cooking went faster, and …" He cut me off.

"Are you actually admitting that my jokes were funny? Wow, you are going to miss me." I stared at him. "That's why you're acting funny, right? Because you don't want to say goodbye since you're going to miss me. A lot apparently." He continued on without even pausing to gloat at having read my mind. "It's not so bad. I'm pretty sure that I'm going to be here a while anyways. From what Pops was saying, it sounds like he and a lot of his sons have good friends here, so odds are we aren't leaving for a bit. You can come down to the village and we can hang out. There's got to be more to do than hunt."

"You don't understand. I can't bec…" I tried.

"Because the villagers don't like you. Yeah, I got that part from earlier, but they haven't barred you from the village. I mean, I did meet you in it."

"But,"

"Nope. No buts. I plan to meet you at your place tomorrow promptly at sunrise. Then, since you really don't want to go to the village, you're going to show me around the island. Don't forget your walking shoes." He winked. "So, with all that said; good night, good-bye, and see you tomorrow." With that he promptly turned around and began to walk towards the village. Before I could turn around to begin my trek back up however, he had turned around and was walking back to me. "Can you take this off now?" he asked as he held his hand out to me. The sea stone stared up at me, a reminder at how our relationship had begun. "My friends are going to have a field day if they see me wearing jewelry." I laughed and began to undo the knots. They did not want to come undone so I loosened them up as much as I could and slid the bracelet off of his hand. "Geez, that feels so much better!" he exclaimed. His hand erupted into flames and he flexed his fingers.

"See you tomorrow," I murmured. The flames went out and he looked at me with a full out grin.

"You know it."

As he walked away I grinned to myself and began to walk back up the hill. I had not been walking for long when I remembered something. I turned around and called out to him with a goofy smile on my face. "Hey!" He turned around in the distance. "Don't you dare come up there without a shirt or I'll keep all of your things." I could hear him groan even from the distance we were separated as he realized that he had forgotten his belongings at my house.

"Make me," he taunted.

"That's your only warning. I'm the only one that knows where your dagger is!" I could see his grin in the distance as he responded.

"Fine fine. " He turned around and continued walking. From his tone, it sounded as though it couldn't matter less to him, but his shoulders were slumped and I knew that I had come out on top.

Ace was in a rush the next the afternoon. He had woken up early and was nearly ready to leave when he had conked out on the way out the door. Thankfully, Marco had noticed that he had missed the breakfast that the cook had cooked up for the crew that morning. He had charged into Ace's room with a huge platter of food and found him on the ground. Unabashedly, he kicked Ace not once but twice. Ace rolled over and sat up with a bleary eyed glare in his direction. "Seriously man?" he questioned until he saw the plate being hovered under his nose. Marco straightened up and gave him a cheeky grin.

"Any complaints now?" he asked.

"None," Ace grinned as he began to wolf down the contents of the food while Marco was still holding it. Marco's grin fell and he pulled the plate away from Ace's reach.

"Woah, at least give me a chance to put it down. I might lose a hand if you're not careful." After setting the plate down on Ace's bed, he studied the man as he ate. "There's something off about you man. Did you get a haircut or something."

"What are you, a girl? Who cares?"

"So yes?"

"No."

Marco continued to stare at him until he finally realized what it was. "Seriously, are you wearing a shirt? I knew something happened while you disappeared."

"Who cares if I am,' Ace grumbled. He dropped the strip of bacon he was holding. "Oh, shit!" he exclaimed while grabbing a fistful of his own shirt in realization. "Marco, what time is it," he demanded.

"Mid-afternoon," was the reply as Marco raised an eyebrow at him in question. "Why, you got somewhere to be?"

"I did," Ace chocked out between mouthfuls of food as he ate twice as fast. "This is not good," He said as he jumped up from the bed and began dashing out the door, leaving the empty plate on the bed.

Marco followed in curiosity. "So, what if you're a little late," he asked as he matched Ace's pace. Ace took the stairs two at a time as he rushed to the deck. "It's not like it's the first time."

"I was supposed to be there this morning!"

"Ooh, what for. Can't be breakfast or you would have gone back to bed after eating. You meeting a girl?" Marco wondered as he couldn't think of any other reason for Ace's rushing. Ace stayed silent and continued heading towards the plank of the deck. "Ooh you are!" Marco exclaimed in glee. "I still don't see why you're rushing. You're always late for those kinds of things. They never care. Not sure why, usually a girl has a fit if the guy shows up a couple of minutes late, but you show up hours late and they pretend nothing happened."

"It's not a date," Ace bit out.

Marco nearly tripped on the step up to the plank. "Then why the hell are you in such a rush?"

"Doesn't matter."

"Aw c'mon man," he wheedled. "Even so, it's still a girl and I doubt she'll care as long as you show up."

"This one's different, believe me." Ace was picturing all of the things that Haruna would do and say to him when he showed up at her doorstep. He shuddered.

"Different?"

"Very much so."

"Ooh, don't tell me Ace has a crush. Sounds like she doesn't though. Bwahahaha!"

"Shaddup!"

Marco stopped running after Ace and called out, "Have fun on your not date."

I woke up late that day and had frantically gotten ready with the idea that Ace would show up any minute. I managed to finish getting ready before he arrived and sat on the couch to wait for him. The waiting had stretched from minutes to hours and I eventually had to dejectedly get up to feed lunch to my growling stomach. I had eaten lunch in a dismal silence. Once I began doing the dishes, my silence became one filled with fury. I should have known he wouldn't show. The villagers must have gotten to him. They always did, just like with Tobi. How could I have expected any less of them, and more of him? My foolishness had merely covered over the facts that had been too obvious for me to detect what should have been obvious to me. I would burn his things the moment I finished with these dishes from lunch; dishes that should have been in a quantity to provide for two instead of one. I would never see him again and perhaps that was for the best. If I had continued to be around him I … … … I would have had a lot of fun. There was no doubt of that, but that fun could have brought disastrous consequences. No, it was better this way. I was drying the last dish when I heard a knock at the front door. Surely he didn't have the nerve to show up this late in the day?

Ace was panting when he finally made it to her porch. He had taken the shortest way to get there which had not been on the trail. He fought through bushes and mud and hidden rocks that he had barely avoided tripping over, but he was here. He raised his fist and knocked on the door and waited. The day was nice and cool, despite the fact that he had just run up a hill. He could faintly hear birds chirping as he waited for her to open the door. She would open the door right? It's not as though he could call out through the sound proof door to explain everything. No, she would answer. The past day that was filled with her smile would surely compel her to answer the door. At the very least, she would want to yell at him. And he would let her, not only because he kind of did deserve it, but also because after she blew off her steam, he would make her laugh. And then they would have their day, late as it would be. Assured with his train of thoughts, he gradually closed his eyes as he pictured all of the things he had planned for them. His thoughts faded away rather quickly into a black haze as he contentedly, if not stupidly, dozed off.

I opened the door and instantly recognized Ace standing there. "What the hell do you want?!" He said nothing and I realized that he had more than enough nerve to show up this late. He had some extra as he was sleeping on my doorstep. That fact that he was doing so while still standing did not impress me. I jabbed him in the shoulder with my finger as I berated him. "I don't believe you. First you stand me up, now you have the gall to show up this late. Are you even listening to me?" He continued to sleep and I nearly closed the door on him before an idea stopped me. I cautiously began to lift the hat from his head with the intent to burn it later after I slammed the door on him. A hand caught my wrist as he woke up. He gave a lazy smile in my direction.

"Do you not like my hat?" he questioned.

"It's too small for your damn head," I replied with a glare.

He rolled his eyes and walked in before I could invite him to do so. "H-hey!" I protested as he began to track mud into my floor. He stopped and glanced over at me as I shut the door. I stared pointedly at his feet and swung my arm in an arc to represent the floor. He gave a small jump of surprise as he realized his error and ended up splattering the mud everywhere. I glared at him as he gave a sheepish shrug. Wordlessly I grabbed a wet towel and handed it to him. He got the hint and began to clean up the mess he made after taking off his boots. True to his word, he was wearing a shirt, but it was the same one as yesterday with the addition of mud and a couple rips. I watched him with an eagle eye. Once he finished he stood. "Great, now leave."

"But what about our day?"

"It's halfway over, there's no point in heading out now."

"I fell asleep on the way out," he explained, "I ran as fast as I could to get here as soon as I woke up." I raised an eyebrow. "After I ate breakfast."

"And obviously you still didn't get enough sleep as you were sleeping on my doorstep. So go home and get some more." I told him as I opened the front door. Mentally I berated myself. He was here wasn't he? He still wanted to spend the day together. Yet here I was, kicking my only 'friend' out the door. Hadn't I just thought last night that I couldn't wait for more of the fun times that followed him? But the sting I had felt at his apparent rejection and that I still felt at the fact that he would show up this late masked those features. My lack of desire to be a plaything to be with whenever was convenient for him outweighed my desire for laughter and fond memories. I would not be used!

Ace deflated. "Fine, " he said as he began to put his boots back on. He walked out the door and closed it behind him. He would not come back, of that I was certain. Yet, not two seconds later, a knock sounded once again at my door. I threw the door open and glared at him. "I forgot where the path is," he explained. The path was in obvious sight, though a bit of a walk aways, and I exasperatedly pointed at it. He craned his neck in the direction of my finger. "Nope, still don't see it." I stepped fully out onto the porch in my bare feet and once again gestured to the unconcealed path. "Seriously, where are you pointing?" I groaned and went back inside. After putting on some shoes, I left the house and began to walk with him towards the path. On the way there, he hooked his arm through mine and began half dragging me in another direction. "So, where should we go first?" he asked in a conversational manner, as though he hadn't just tricked me into coming with him anyways.

"Why, are you so insistent on this?" I groaned though genuinely curious.

"Are you kidding? One of the guys saw me leaving. If I return this soon, he'll never stop laughing at me." Ace complained. I wondered whether or not he was just saying that as an excuse or whether that was genuinely the only reason he was still here. Then I decided that I didn't want to know and would try to enjoy myself regardless. It wasn't looking like I would get to leave any time soon anyways.

**Hi guys. Been a while again. Hope you enjoy this and think it's funny. If you have any ideas as to what should happen while they're having a day in the sun. Feel free to let me know. :D**


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